1968 Pontiac Firebird - Ghost From The Past

A Chrysler 8 3/4-inch rear features 4.11 gears, an Eaton posi, and the axles were shortened to accommodate the negative-offset wheels. The rear suspension was converted to a Competition Engineering 4-link system. All four corners are sprung with Strange coilovers and offer ride adjustment for cruising and performance. Bringing the F-Body to a halt are front discs off a Camaro and rear drums, and power steering makes turning effortless.

Motivation
All that stuff is cool, but the biggest reason Jeff wanted this car sat under its shapely hood-the Pontiac 400. Jeff and Mike took out the engine and began to tear it down. By this point, he knew he wanted to go with something "pretty nasty." After the block was machined, the bottom end was assembled with Keith Black forged pistons connected to Eagle rods and a stock refurbished crank. The mixture is transported into the .030-over cylinders through E-heads with 2.11/1.66-inch stainless valves and compression checks in at 9.5:1.

A Comp Cams valvetrain adds security to the top end while taking direction from the roller cam. [The owner does not have cam specs.] The thirsty 400 is fed by an RPM intake manifold and a Demon 750 carburetor with fuel sourced from a custom 12-gallon tank mounted in the leather-dressed trunk.

A throaty rumble echoes through the streets of Tipp City, thanks to Jet Hot-coated Hedman Hedders' 1 3/4-inch longtubes, and 3-inch Dynomax mufflers. Backing the engine is a Turbo 400 transmsision with a TCI 3,000-stall converter and a Hurst Pistol-Grip Quarter Stick shifter.

A custom March pulley system spins the accessories smoothly, including the Vintage Air compressor. Mike Landis made a pair of highly polished aluminum valve covers and a wiper-motor cover. The ignition is comprised of an MSD system with a 6AL box, Blaster coil, Pro-Billet distributor, and wires. At 30-degrees of total timing, Jeff claims the engine makes just over 500 hp.

The End
The project took just over three years and Jeff couldn't be happier. He built his Firebird exactly the way he wanted. "My parents wouldn't let me have one, so I figured I would do it anyway now that I was older." Jeff can't expect everyone to understand his love for this Pontiac, but he doesn't care. "My wife Kelly asked me, 'Why would you want to drive an old car when you could be driving a new one?' so I gave her the keys and said, 'Take it for a drive.' Sure enough, when she returned, all she said was, 'Nevermind, I understand,'" he jokes.

Since the ghost from his past has shown itself, he tries to take it out as often as possible. It's been drawing quite a crowd wherever he goes, too. At the 2009 Tipp City Cruise-In, there were swarms of loyalists hovering around the Bird, immediately attracting this author to beeline right over to it. Because of this effect his Firebird has on people, he took home First Place in Pro Street class at the 2008 Trans Am Nationals. It took 23 years to get there, but Jeff doesn't mind.